This invention relates generally to farm or construction equipment and more specifically to a vehicle that uses a steel lug drive assembly and can perform multiple farming operations simultaneously.
Soil compaction is becoming a problem for many farmers. The fact that field machines are becoming increasingly heavier combined with the desire for farmers to enter their fields early in the spring when the ground is wet, both add to soil compaction. Because compacted soil has fewer channels for water to seep through, water entering compacted soil is drastically reduced. This causes greater surface wetness and more runoff, which in turn increases erosion. Furthermore, compacted soil does not allow plant roots to spread through the soil, which contributes to inadequate moisture and nutrients reaching the plant. The bottom line for farmers is that soil compaction reduces crop yield.
Farmers have a desire to enter their fields early in the spring to begin preparing their fields and plating crops. However, the wet soil that generally comes with the spring thaw creates problems for farmers. Compaction increases as soil wetness increases. Therefore, in order to maximize yields for the season, farmers are advised to stay out of the fields until soil wetness decreases. However this adversely affects farmers in that it shortens their crop growing season. Purdue University has determined that the value of planting during an optimum two-week period is worth $475 an hour in the Corn Belt.
There are many factors that contribute to soil compaction such as machine weight, tire size, tire inflation pressure, and the number of passes a tractor must make over the soil during a season. There have been several attempts in the agricultural industry to solve the problem of soil compaction. U.S. Pat. No. RE37,174 describes a way to increase traction while decreasing soil compaction by using an “endless” belt or track on either side of the vehicle for propulsion, similar to that used with bulldozers or army tanks. RE37,174 teaches that less soil compaction will occur if a vehicle is allowed to spread its weight over a greater surface area of the ground.
Using similar logic, some farmers try to increase traction and minimize soil compaction by adding more pneumatic or solid rubber tires to their axels so that instead of two tires per axel, there are four or six tires per axel. This is done in an attempt to create more surface area with which the tractor is contacting the ground. However, because pneumatic tires need ballast weight in order to achieve the level of traction needed to pull farm implement devices, adding tires to an axel can have an adverse effect on soil compaction because more ballast weight must be added for each additional tire on the axel, and thus the overall weight of the vehicle increases. The heavier the vehicle, the more it causes soil compaction.
The problem of soil compaction relates closely to the problem of traction. Generally pneumatic tires are not very efficient. As stated in the previous paragraph, pneumatic tires need ballast weight in order to achieve a desired amount of traction. This is especially true for pneumatic tires on wet soil. In order for a pneumatic tire to be effective, it must operate at a considerable rate of slippage in order for the soil to build up under the tire so as to produce thrust for propulsion. This is because a typical pneumatic tire is sensitive only to surface soil.
Traction problems are compounded when the tractor pulls a farm implement device such as a chisel. Current chisel systems actually reduce the amount of traction achieved by tractors. The chisels that dig into the ground are located on the rear of the implement device, while a hitch on the front of the device attaches it to the tractor. As the vehicle moves forward pulling the chisels, the chisels at the rear of the implement device are pulled into the ground. This causes the implement device to pivot using the axel of its wheels as the pivot point, and thus the hitch portion of the implement device is pushed away from the ground. This hitch portion is attached to the rear of a tractor, which is also pushed away from the ground, giving the rear of the tractor less traction.
In addition to compaction and traction problems, farmers must fight insects that destroy their crops. Many farmers use chemicals to try to get rid of the insects and other bugs that prey on their crops. However, chemicals can be harmful to the environment, especially in high concentrations. Recently it has been found that insects build up resistances to chemicals so that the concentration of chemicals used must be increased over time to achieve the same level of results.
Therefore there is a need for a farm vehicle that minimizes soil compaction, increases traction, and provides alternative methods of killing insects that prey on crops.
It is therefore an object of this invention to maximize traction of a farm vehicle while minimizing soil compaction by way of a steel lug drive assembly.
It is further an object of this invention to reduce the amount of chemicals used on crops by employing a steel lug drive assembly that penetrates the soil and leaves it with a rough surface, which helps prevent erosion and retards weeds.
It is further an object of this invention to minimize soil compaction by combining several farm tools onto one vehicle and thus requiring fewer passes over the soil during a season.
It is further an object of this invention to aid in the destruction of root worms by tilling the soil deep enough to aid in the destruction of their habitat, thereby reducing the need for chemicals.
It is further an object of this invention to enrich the soil nutrient base by mixing the shredded materials into the soil with the roto-tiller.